Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition Review

Inviting Your Friends Over
While it may seem pretty lonely that you’re the only one that can experience and see your creation, don’t fret as the Xbox 360 will have a feature that allows one to invite someone online. Those who want to visit someone’s world and explore or maybe help them can simply join their world. The host must send the invite and it will only work when the host is online. Unlike in the PC version, since the game has a dedicated server for multiplayer, you can’t visit anyone’s world unless they’re up and playing. It’s rather disappointing but since there are some limitations to the development of this game, I couldn’t blame 4J studios for this flaw but hey, I’m still glad that there’s still an online multiplayer.

NOT

Lacking Lots of Content from PC Version
For a great game to come to the Xbox 360 console, there’s a lot of expectations and one of them is having the same content as the original. Unfortunately, what you’ll be playing in Minecraft isn’t the most definitive version of the game. A lot of things are cut out, such as the ability to enchant items and leveling. Also, the island that you’ll get to explore isn’t as big as the ones you’ll find in the PC version. Instead, you’ll see half of what you’d normally explore in the original game. While these things aren’t in the console version, 4J Studios packed the core stuff that’s necessary, but in the end it’s not the most complete version you’ll get. Many may have to rely on the DLC packs that they will release in the future to get the more complete experience.

Dying is a Bad Thing
When you explore the island, you’ll come across some monsters and enemies. Since you are vulnerable to attacks, you’ll die when your hearts are gone. While it may not sound like a bad thing because you respawn, you’ll be pissed when you find out that the items that you have collected aren’t in your inventory anymore. So that forces you go to start again and collect the things that you previously had.

VERDICT

Despite the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft not having the complete package that the PC owners are currently experiencing, 4J Studios still did a good job in bringing over a game to the console where players can simply relax and put their creations into the game. Minecraft might not be visually appealing but the core concept that Mojang wants to deliver works well and it gives aspiring artists the opportunity to put their imagination inside a game. While it may feel incomplete, we can definitely expect downloadable packs to further enhance the gameplay in the future.

[Editor’s Note: Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition was reviewed on the Xbox 360 platform. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]